What NFL teams made playoffs with interim head coach? History facing Jets, Jeff Ulbrich
The New York Jets became the first team in the 2024 NFL season to make a coaching change by firing Robert Saleh after their Week 5 loss to Minnesota. Saleh and the team parted ways after a 2-3 start to his fourth season in New York.
In a statement, Jets owner Woody Johnson said the team is moving forward with defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich as the head coach for the rest of the season.
"He is a tough coach who has the respect of the coaches and players on this team," Johnson's statement read. "I believe he, along with the coaches on this staff, can get the most out of our talented team and attain the goals we established this offseason."
Ulbrich takes over with a "Monday Night Football" matchup with AFC East rival Buffalo next on the Jets' schedule.
New York started the season with playoff aspirations. Can Ulbrich lead them there? Here's what history says about interim head coaches making the playoffs.
NFL playoff teams with an interim coach
Only two teams in NFL history have made the playoffs with an interim head coach: the 2021 Las Vegas Raiders and the 1961 Houston Oilers (now Tennessee Titans).
Raiders coach Jon Gruden resigned after five games in 2021 after emails excerpts including homophobic, racist, and misogynistic language he used were released by the NFL as part of an investigation into former Washington Commanders team owner Daniel Snyder.
Special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia took over the 3-2 Raiders team and led them to a 10-7 finish and a playoff berth. The Raiders lost 26-19 to the Bengals in the AFC wild card playoffs.
In 1961, Oilers owner Bud Adams fired coach Lou Rymkus after a 1-3-1 start to the season. Assistant coach Wally Lemm took over and led the Oilers to nine consecutive victories, including the AFL championship title.
These are the only success stories in NFL history. Another interim head coach nearly qualified for this: Bruce Arians with the 2012 Indianapolis Colts. Arians took over for 12 weeks of the regular season while head coach Chuck Pagano underwent treatment for leukemia. However, Pagano returned before the playoffs and was on the sidelines for the Colts' wild card game.
Overall, history isn't on Ulbrich and the Jets' side to make the playoffs in 2024, but they do enter Week 6 as one of five AFC teams with two wins. Their remaining schedule is the fourth-easiest in the league, per Sharp Football Analysis, opening the door for a potential playoff run.
Jeff Ulbrich playing career
Ulbrich was selected in the third round (86th overall) in the 2000 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. He played 10 seasons with the 49ers as a linebacker and started 75 of his 120 career games. He tallied 501 tackles, 5.5 sacks, two interceptions, and two fumble recoveries in those 120 games.
He finished the 2009 NFL season on injured reserve and announced his retirement in December of that year.
Jeff Ulbrich coaching experience
Ulbrich stayed in the NFC West to start his coaching career. He began in Seattle as an assistant special teams coordinator for the 2010 and 2011 NFL seasons. He spent the next three years with the UCLA Bruins as the linebackers coach and special teams coordinator.
Ulbrich returned to the NFL for the 2015 season with the Atlanta Falcons. He was the linebackers coach for four seasons before moving to an assistant head coach role in 2020. When the Falcons fired coach Dan Quinn that season and promoted Raheem Morris in an interim role, Ulbrich took over as defensive coordinator.
When Saleh was hired as the Jets' head coach in 2021, he brought Ulbrich along as defensive coordinator. Ulbrich has been in that role ever since.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Interim coaches who led NFL playoff teams: History for Jets, Ulbrich